FOR GREAT PERFORMANCES' FOUNDING FATHER, ART DOESN'T IMITATE LIFE -- IT'S LIFE ITSELF

Meet Legendary Producer Jac Venza

"I can't ever retire," laughs Jac Venza, literally one of the founding fathers of public television and the uniquely creative executive producer of Thirteen/WNET New York's GREAT PERFORMANCES on PBS. "I'm much too addicted to house seats." It's highly unlikely that a theater anywhere would deny Venza those coveted best seats in the house, retired or not. The truth is, as he says with a smile, "My personal and professional lives have merged. I'm obsessive about my work because it's an integral part of who I am."

His obsession began early. Venza was born in Chicago in the 1920s, his father an Italian immigrant shoemaker. "There's nothing in my background that should have brought me here," Venza says, referring to his status as one of television's most prolific and respected producers, "but I knew from the age of eight that I wanted to be an artist."

"I have always been lucky with my work -- and with my hair," says Venza. He indeed still has a full head of thick, dark hair a teenager would envy; whether there is any Samson-like connection between this and the numerous personal honors he's received, including an Emmy and Peabody Award for lifetime achievement, who can say? But there is no question that the quality of his work and that of a loyal team of producers and other creatives accounts for the hundreds of awards received by GREAT PERFORMANCES, the longest-running and most honored performing arts series in the history of television, which this year is celebrating its 30th anniversary.

It all began for Jac Venza -- who describes himself as "a highly visual person" -- in the 1940s, when he came to New York to study formally with the noted theatrical designers of the day. After a lot of hard work and a series of union-mandated exams, he was soon getting projects as a set designer on and off Broadway. But even before this, Venza was a style wunderkind; at the age of 22 he was sought after by the high-end stores and restaurants on Fifth Avenue and written up in TIME for the groundbreaking work he did in window design. Then in 1950, he was lured into television just as the home screen was becoming a reality; an executive at CBS who met him through mutual professional friends, told him excitedly "you have to come to work tomorrow!"

Venza was dizzied by the pace of the fledgling days of television, and equally awed by the opportunities of live TV. "When you're young and energetic and self-confident, you can do amazing things," he recalls, citing his work on three or more programs a week, largely music and variety shows, dramatic specials, and beloved series, such as I REMEMBER MAMA. Venza spent more than 12 years at CBS, eventually venturing from design into production and direction, as well. "We were all beginning and learning together, and it was very exciting to be part of the generation that was setting the rules and standards," he says. "But you needed a lot of stamina."

That stamina -- and creative courage -- came in handy in 1964 when Venza boldly left CBS to become part of the original group of producers assembled by the Ford Foundation for their project, National Educational Television (NET). Much discussion went into the weighty content that an educational alternative to commercial television should offer. It was Venza who piped up at a meeting and said, "Why don't we entertain them, too?" A lifelong lover of dance, opera, and theater, Venza recognized that among commercial television's shortcomings was the lack of a sustained platform for the classical and contemporary arts, and he felt strongly that this should be a component of educational TV. So even at the beginning, Venza joined the brave new world of public television as the executive in charge of drama and dance.

Over the next eight years, NET became WNET (Channel 13 in New York), the flagship station of the newly formed PBS, which was designed to function as a program service for a growing consortium of independent public stations. Venza became WNET's executive producer of cultural programs, a position that allowed him to get the artistic process really moving with sporadic major productions, short-form series, seasonal specials, and, at last, to create the framework for the arts he wanted. GREAT PERFORMANCES was born to accommodate opera and concerts, and under this umbrella, DANCE IN AMERICA and THEATER IN AMERICA were also established. It was the beginning of unprecedented collaborations among performers and artistic companies -- first from around the country, eventually from around the world.

In the 30 years since, Jac Venza has traveled extensively, nationally and internationally, to explore possible productions for the series, whether filmed versions of existing plays and symphonic concerts, or productions specially created for the series. It's a consistently demanding task, because it always requires bringing necessary funding into sync with production schedules, the availability of star talent, and broadcast schedules. Bringing together all of the production elements is what he finds most gratifying, and getting the funding is his greatest challenge. But the entire process has been made somewhat easier by a loyal coterie of sponsors with whom Venza works frequently, including the Dorothy and Lewis Cullman Foundation, the Irene Diamond Fund, and the LuEsther T. Mertz Charitable Trust. "Thank heaven there are extraordinary people out there who also believe that presenting the arts to the broadest-possible audience is a good idea," says Venza. "They take the risks with us."

It's a far different form of production from the old days of television. "You tried to find a format and stick to it," he explains. "For GREAT PERFORMANCES, we allow every show to be completely customized and give it the special treatment it deserves." It's this approach that has enabled the series to expertly produce an eclectic range of fare, from classic operas mounted at the great opera houses of the world, to numerous symphonic concerts with legendary maestros and orchestras, to performances by the world's most dynamic dance companies, to literary masterpieces like BRIDESHEAD REVISITED.

"It's exhilarating to bring this kind of work from New York and around the world to parts of the country that would never see it otherwise," says Venza, "and it's equally exciting to bring the best of regional and international work here to New York, where not even the most sophisticated audiences can be exposed to it."

None of this is logistically easy or financially inexpensive, and Venza and his teams are constantly faced with hard choices. But he feels strongly that non-commercial television must remain loyal to its mission, and even its limitations. "We should not let the size of our audience be the only determining factor in what we produce," he says of public television's ratings, which are routinely overshadowed by commercial outlets. "We've become specialized at what we do and how we work, and we're creating a substantial body of work for new generations, just as a library would. That's invaluable."

Even though Jac Venza has approached his work like a spiritual calling, he is a sensible man who realizes that "you have to know how to turn it off sometimes, in order to keep it going the rest of the time."

A longtime resident of New York's Upper East Side, Venza spends his weekends at his house nestled in the hills over the Hudson. Sharing his time between the city and the country "is the best of both worlds," Venza says. "To sustain yourself in New York, you have to have someplace else to go where the biggest challenge of the day is going into town for milk." The same logic often finds Venza browsing through Home Depot for the right materials for some country project, or visiting a local farmer's market for the perfect ingredients for a gourmet dinner with friends. "I love to cook and I'm very good at it," he says with pride.

During the week, Venza finds stolen moments for a leisurely stroll through the Metropolitan Museum of Art ("it calms my nerves"), works out at a gym twice a week, and maintains a disciplined routine of vitamins, good nutrition, and adequate sleep. "I can't do what I do without taking care of myself," he says, noting that he is dedicated to maintaining the same weight he had 20 years ago. "I never want to feel like I can't make it up the stairs."

Neither can he restrict himself to the streets and hillsides of New York. Jac travels frequently for business and pleasure (usually both at once) and has a preference for the exotic and far flung. Last year, he visited the seaside in Croatia, both for its vibrant waters and innovative theater. "I had no idea how beautiful it was, or what interesting things they're doing there."

Perhaps Jac Venza's best formula for a balanced life comes from his willingness to trust in the capability and talent of the many hands-on production teams that oversee the details and blossoming of each production under his broader supervision, including the award-winning biography series, AMERICAN MASTERS, and the offbeat arts series, EGG. "I feel like the patriarch who keeps it going, but you have to let your people spread their wings, and you have to care more about the artists and their egos than you do your own," he says. And if you're Jac Venza, you especially have to allow the technical people do their thing. "I'm strangely incapable when it comes to technology," he says, laughing at his ongoing battles with his DVD player and the station's sophisticated new phone system "that can practically do anything short of launching a rocket. I think artistry is more important than technology," he concludes. Not a surprising attitude from the man who, when he was first invited into television 50 years ago, said "what's television?" Thankfully for all of us, he found out.

Thirteen/WNET New York is one of the key program providers for public television, bringing such acclaimed series as NATURE, GREAT PERFORMANCES, AMERICAN MASTERS, CHARLIE ROSE, RELIGION & ETHICS NEWSWEEKLY, STAGE ON SCREEN, EGG the arts show, and CYBERCHASE -- as well as the work of Bill Moyers -- to audiences nationwide. As the flagship public broadcaster in the New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut metro area, Thirteen reaches millions of viewers each week, airing the best of American public television along with its own local productions such as THE ETHNIC HERITAGE SPECIALS, THE NEW YORK WALKING TOURS, NEW YORK VOICES, REEL NEW YORK, and its MetroArts/Thirteen cable arts programming. With educational and community outreach projects that extend the impact of its television productions, Thirteen takes television "out of the box." And as broadcast and digital media converge, Thirteen is blazing trails in the creation of Web sites, enhanced television, CD-ROMs, DVD-ROMs, educational software, and other cutting-edge media products. More information about Thirteen can be found at: www.thirteen.org.